DesmoDog

Sign me up for the three narrowcase Ducatis please. 

Is it possible to post pics on this site using code? As in, I have a bunch of pics hosted on my website. Typically when I post any of them on a forum I paste the link to their location with image tags. But unless I'm mistaken I can't do that here? 

Kind of a bummer because for a lot of things I know where they are on my site, but not whichever hard drive they may be on at home...

Hmm... I just clicked the "Other MEdia" option and found I coul dpost links, but they have to be from an https source... I never upgraded and am still at http so probably not gonna work. 

Oh well...

Considering they show a video of it on a dyno and describe it as being strapped to a Dynojet I'm gonna go out on a limb and say it's rear wheel HP... 

Not that it matters, that's pretty low for a 1.7L engine in 2021 no matter where it's measured. 

And as long as I'm being bitchy... they claim "We strapped the Softail Slim to our in-house Dynojet 250i dyno, recording horsepower and torque measurements..." yet a Dynojet measures neither torque nor horsepower. Being an inertia dyno it measures the time it takes to spin up the roller and calculates the rest. 

And now that I've blathered on about all THAT, I see the video is now of a Ducati Desert Sled, so disregard the video comment?  

@Earache  Hey! Those look familiar...  I still haven't tried printing them in flexible material but I'm getting closer...

Here's the set I printed for Earache. Not sure why he chose this color but I don't judge...

I'll take a pass on this one... I haven't ridden with snow on the ground since I lived in Indiana. That's been over 20 years now, still have snow here, don't feel the need to ride in it!

8 hours ago, Bruce said:

Mind you. Setting the backlash on those puppies is certain to make you shit while you cum.

Nah, it's not that bad. You just have to get the stepless plane on the crank/central shaft pair right first, then build from there. So all you need is time. And of course shims. And the tool to pull the bearing cups to replace the shims.

And remember to install the central shaft before putting the case halves together. And then set the stepless planes on the cams. And don't go back to tweak the main gear later cuz if you do you have to redo everything above it. 

And make sure you get the timing right, keep in mind the timing dots only line up once every six revolution. That assumes you aren't changing the cam timing, which you really should do because from the factory they're notorious for being off. And to change the timing you'll be offsetting the gears from stock settings, both top and bottom. Which means the factory timing dots won't line up anymore. Break out the timing disk. Youll probably want to add your own dots when you're done, though who knows if  they'll stay there. Or if the next guy to work on it will know what they mean. 

But other than that it's pretty much like using a chain. 

On 15/02/2021 at 17:46, Sir Fallsalot said:

I've moved to the cam chain tensioner tonight. first job was to remove the cooling system thermostat and fill point relatively simple job which involved undoing some jubilee clips and then covering my garage carpets and socks in antifreeze ffs. after moping everything up and  a clean pair of socks this is what i took off

 Removing that lot gave me better access to the rocker cover looks a bit scary in there i don't think I've done this to a twin cam engine before

Didn't take long to get at the cam chain tensioner and only had to remove one of the camshafts. But you have to remove the two R clips and push the pins out to free it from the cam chain while over the cam chain tunnel what could possibly go wrong 

Got it out without dropping anything into the engine but still have to put them back in tomorrow

From what I've read the bottom cylindrical part of the cam chain tensioner in the photo below is full of oil and stops the cam chain tensioner plunger from returning once the spring advances it, but when you drain the oil from the bike that part never gets drained and it gets a bit sticky usually around 50,000 miles. So the whole point of this exercise is to flush it out and refill with new oil because as far as i'm aware the oil has been there from when the bike was new which makes it 28 years old.

Last photo with the cam out really not looking forward to putting this back together tomorrow might have to get the workshop manual out looks a bit complicated 

 

CAMCHAIN? We don't need no stinkin cam chain!

When I click on it, it sends me to my YouTube page and I don't know which video it's refering to. Being age restricted doesn't narrow it down enough cuz of my propensity for, er, um, never you mind ya twats!

I'm so confused... I think I missed how this started cuz I haven't got a clue what you lot are going on about. And now that I've typed that I realize I don't really want to know!

I don't recall my first bike experience, it was a dirtbike of some sort. Before that there were minibikes but I don't recall the first of those either. I do recall my first streetbike ride though. I was in highschool, summer of '78 probably.  I had no interest in street bikes, I wanted a dirt bike. But I was at a party and someone had a 350 Honda, I think it was the four cylinder version but I'm not sure. In any case I took it out and while coming down a hill it developed a bit of head shake, which for some reason I thought was kind of funny. By the time I got back I wanted a streetbike, and that was that. 

I remember one early dirt bike ride. Trying to do wheelies in an alley by my house. It was like an 80cc something or other and it started to go over backwards. I went to put my feet back to catch it, but the kickstart went up my pant leg (fookin bell bottoms) and over I went. oops. 

Even earlier than that, I recall two mini bike rides. Our neighborhood had a hill that led down to a short stright and then a 90 degree left turn. I had it wide open down the hill and the straight, and went wide on the turn. Up into the lawns, hit a hill, and just as I was cresting that a buddy came walking out of his house to see me airborne in his front yard. Landed it, rode it out, and back onto the road. Oh yeah. He thought I was just that good but the entire thign was dumb luck and me being to scared to bail. 

But the bad ride was... I'll back up. My mom didn't want me on any form of bike. So the mini bike rides were A) borrowed rides and B) secret. Until the day that we headed down the road Iived on. My dad was out mowing the lawn. I figured screw it and just kept it pinned (not like that was all that fast) and rode by. Of course he saw me. That one ended my mini bike riding.

Lutefisk is soaked in lye, not vinegar. 

My grandmother came over to America on a boat from Norway. Virtually all holiday meals were at her place while I was growing up, and never once did I see lutefisk. She thought it was disgusting. Damn she made some good donuts though. And chocolate chip cookies too. 

which reminds me, I haven't had any chocolate yet today. WTF? Excuse me, I gotta go...

Did somebody say SHEEP?

I am on Facebook WAY too much, but prefer forums. With all the political bullshit that's been going on here lately I've wanted to leave FB (My wife did years ago) but the one thing that keeps me there is the 3D printer groups, or one group in particular. I also use FB Marketplace to sell things rather than Craigslist these days but that's secondary. 

I much prefer forums over Facebook due to the lack of ads and infuriating opions from complete fucking idiots who should know better. And, things get lost in FB. Have you ever tried to go back to a post on FB? Once you leave the page and come back everything's different. Drives me fooking nuts when I'm looking for info I know I saw there. 

So I'd leave Facebook if there was a forum for my particular printer that had the same people on it, but for now the user group there is a great way to get quick contact with the guys who write the firmware and know about mods, etc. I have also started using Discord for that but the Facebook group is more user friendly. 

And, of course, goes without saying, but Facebook is one more place I can stalk Earache. 

6 hours ago, Pedro said:

That's the curse of buying a new bike, the year after something new comes along. 

But then again, if you wait for the next best thing you would never buy it.

Yeah, Ducati is/was good at updating the superbikes regularly. Well, of course they were, they had to be to keep up back then. Anyway, after one particularly whiney rant by some guy who still wasn't going to buy anything because he heard rumors they were going to have more power next year, I started out saying I had bought a 250 Monza in 1965 and then walked all the way up to present times with excuses on why I was waiting to buy my next bike and therefore still riding the 250. 

He didn't see the humor.

Well OF COURSE it got updated this year. I bought a 2020 after all so it's a given the 2021 would be updated. 

Aside from the tubeless wheels I'm not all that upset. I do like the 100th anniversary colors but from what I hear they're limited availability, one per dealer so chances are I wouldn' thave been able to get that anyway. 

2 hours ago, Earache said:

I'll admit it - I ride like my hair is on fire and my ass is catchin'. Rarely do less than 85 / 90 mph on motorways and 10-15 mph over on other roads.

Yet,  I have never had a speeding ticket on a motorcycle in over 400,000 miles or so of riding. Dunno why, just dumb luck, I guess.

Got pulled for 61 mph in a 55 zone last summer - no ticket, just talked to the Trooper for a bit.....

 

You have, however, gotten a ticket for passing in a no passing zone... or have you forgotten about the little meeting with the Tennessee Valley Authority a bunch of years back?  Jeep Cherokee blocking the bridge on the straight after the twisties through the wooded section? Had a cop riding with us so they knocked it down from reckless driving? $75 and never went on my record in Indiana since it was the TVA and not a state cop if I recall correctly. 

That's the only ticket I've gotten on a bike. Got pulled over once and asked where I was going in such a hurry. I just said "I dunno" and then he asked why my plate was zip tied on. Got into the story of just moving here, plates were different sizes, frames are hard to get for these fancy Dewcahtees etc etc. Let me go with a warning. Had lights flashed at me a few times and at least once the guy just ignored me as I came at him at 80mph on the wrong side of the double yellow while passing bicycles that were out in the road. That was on the Blueridge Parkway, I think the limit is 30mph along there? I was on a bright yellow 996, I'm pretty sure he saw me. 

The first speeding ticket I ever got was in a diesel Rabbit (VW Golf). 63 in a 55 on the interstate. Fucker threatened to arrest me if I didn't pay it right then and there. I was 100 miles from home, coming back from visiting my girlfriend who was off at college, I had $1.50 with me, no credit cards, no check book and it was before cell phones. I told him let's go then and he backed off. Turns out you can pay by mail too. Prick. 

Let's play a game, and see who can spot the trend first!  I listed these with pics in another forum a couple years ago, but the photo links don't work here so you'll have to use your imagination. I just copied and pasted this so if some of the comments don't make sense, that's probably why. 

# 1, 1991 Ducati 907ie

#2 was an RD 350 track bike made out of three bikes (so does that make it 2, 3, &4?). It's #907, I haven't got any good pics of it

#3 A Yamaha R5 that was used to build the 350^^^^

#4 was a Honda Hawk... if I have pics I don't know where they are

#5 May have been a KDX250, not sure of the exact order around this time.

 #6 1995 Ducati 900ss/cr

#6.5  Honda Ascot, FT500? The single cylinder. Was going to be a racebike. Big life event happens, project abandoned and sold. Never ran while I owned it. 

#7 2000 Ducati 996

# 8 1974ish Ducati 750GT  

#9, 10, 10.5 bought at the same time, both 1966 Ducati Monzas, one is a Jr.  10.5 is being built from leftover parts from these projects

#12  1997 Ducati 900ss/sp

#13  2011(?) Ducati 796 Hypermotard

#14  2015 Ducati Monster 1200S

#15  1991 Ducati 851 My dream bike back in 1991. 

#16  2003 Aprilia RSV Mille R  Currently being set up for track use

#17  2020 Moto Guzzi V85 TT

I'm thinking I missed one or two but that's the gist of it. For a lot of years I kept around 7 bikes around the house but now only 15-17 are left, along with two of the Ducati project bikes. And the Aprilia will be for sale in the spring. 

If I had it to do over again, I'd probably have sold my 851 and kept the 996, but so be it. 

I wish the US versions came with tinted screens!

...and yet you still took the time to open the thread and post a reply. I don't care about the best bagger of 2020... so I don't read threads on them? Maybe it's just me.  

As someone who's ridden a V4 Ducati on a racetrack, I can say they are quite impressive. If I was buying a sportbike it'd be the V2 rather than a V4 though. The truth is on the day I rode the V4 I was faster everywhere but the straights when I was on it's little brother, the 959. The V2 that replaced the 959 is even nicer IMHO, if I had not bought a V85 this summer I'd be seriously considering adding one to the aviary. But I'm kinda touched when it comes to Ducatis, so there is that. 

This is more my speed. 

I think I found @Earache 's favorite Christmas song?

Or maybe this is it?

On 26/11/2020 at 11:53, Earache said:

It's purple not blue ya blind bastage!

Well it WAS blue but now I agree with you it's purple, if by purple you mean pink. 

21 hours ago, Earache said:

No oceans within 1,200 miles of here so no fresh seafood at all.

I know! Aint it great?  

I mean the seafood part. Oceans are cool...

But what I really want to know is, why is Earche's avatar a simple blue "E" now instead of a smiling knee slider???

On 16/10/2020 at 10:04, Tym said:

My shorai has been brilliant, doesnt need a trickle charger all winter and it weighs less then a feather, just the weight savings alone is huge...never had a problem in cold weather. just saying lithium isnt enough lithium iron so far are the way to go

The problem is "lithium" is tossed around as the universal term. When I bought my last battery (for my RSV-R) I looked at a LOT of different brands and some of them even interchanged "lithium ion" and "lithium iron" in their own literature. 

On 19/10/2020 at 10:41, BusBoy said:

tbh, there isn't a battery alive that will take 60 plus Volts and not burst into flames. Somewhere in your explanation there is some truth but it's clouded by misunderstanding. At least where I'm reading it. The fault was not the battery, your regulator and rectifier failed. End of. 

I completely agree it was the regulator that caused the drama and didn't mean to imply anything different. FWIW I replaced the battery with the the same kind that melted after I replaced the regulator with a modern mosfet unit. 

Kinda curious how you got I was blaming the battery when it starts out with:

"tldr version; Old regulator bad. Voltage high. Really high. Victims included fancy new battery, the ECU, and a few other things I've forgotten. Fix is modern MOSFET regulator. Moral of the story - bikes without MOSFET regulators should not be running lithium batteries. Lithium batteries are fragile."

And end with "So to sum it up, lithium batteries require modern charging systems with mosfet regulators..."

Unless you keyed in on lithium batteries are fragile. In which case, they certainly are more needy than an AGM or lead acid battery. 

In my case it took a lot of volts to kill it. In brands without built in protection it doesn't take any more voltage than an old regulator might allow and a lead acid would tolerate much better.